Maker · Fruit
BerryBrothers
Soft fruit from field to kitchen, fresh within hours. The Van Zuilen family grows strawberries, red and blueberries, raspberries and blackberries in the Betuwe and Limburg, delivering year-round thanks to their own cultivation and cold storage.
The story
Who's behind it
BerryBrothers is the family business of Van Zuilen. Jan and Karin van Zuilen started in 1998 with a nursery in the Betuwe on some 3 hectares. In 2005 the business took the name Berrybrothers. Since then cultivation has expanded considerably: alongside the Betuwe, the business now operates in Limburg too, with sites in Roggel, Heythuysen and land acquired near Buren. Brother Albert joined the team, and now the next generation is running the show, with cousins dividing production and management. It remains a business where grower and seller sit at the same table.
They grow the full range of soft fruit: strawberries, red berries, blueberries, raspberries and blackberries. Red berries are their hallmark. Cold storage capacity runs to 400,000 kilos, allowing them to spread the harvest across the year rather than having to sell everything in summer.
What makes it truly different
Two things. First: they are independent in both cultivation and sales. No middleman deciding what reaches the customer. What comes from the field goes straight through, and that cuts time between harvest and kitchen. For soft fruit, which deteriorates quickly, that short chain is the difference between crisp and mushy.
Second: year-round supply. For red berries they manage that by combining large-scale cold storage with cultivation in northern Portugal and Chile. While most growers only supply in summer, with BerryBrothers you can feature Dutch red berries on your menu in January too. That makes the fruit workable as a fixed element, not a seasonal whim lasting six weeks.
How to set yourself apart with this
Use year-round availability as an opportunity. Red berries as a constant garnish for game, duck or a terrine bring colour and an acidity that cuts through fat, even outside season. Feature strawberries exactly at their peak instead: delivered shortly after harvest, so plan your desserts around the weeks they're at their best and let the quality speak for itself.
Because the chain is short, you can be sharper about freshness. Talk to your supplier about what peaks when and build your desserts and garnishes around that. Soft fruit that's fresh from the field demands little processing. That's precisely the point: let the fruit do the work.
“We are increasingly recognised in the market as a year-round soft fruit supplier.”
Chef’s tip
Red berries are their calling card, available year-round thanks to cold storage. Use them wherever you need acidity and colour: beside game and poultry, or as a fresh counterpoint to a dessert that would otherwise be too sweet.
How to use it
Ideas for your menu
Red berries with game and duck
The acidity cuts through fat and brings colour to the plate.
Strawberries at their peak
Harvested on flavour during season, in your kitchen shortly after picking.
Raspberries and blackberries with cheese
Small, sweet and gently tart alongside a ripe or blue cheese.
Blueberries in dessert or breakfast
Firm in structure, they hold up well in warm preparations.
For your menu
“Dutch red berries from BerryBrothers, family cultivation from the Betuwe, fresh from the field and harvested year-round.”
Products from BerryBrothers
What we carry from this maker
Red berries
The speciality, available year-round thanks to cold storage and cultivation elsewhere.
Blackberries
Supplementary soft fruit from their own cultivation programme.
Prices and availability are in the portal. Not a customer yet? Become a customer or log in to order.
Taste it in your own kitchen
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